The Wisdom Finishing School Programme

Introduction

Originality and uniqueness are the hallmark of The DN Wisdom Tree Global School. Going beyond the curriculum is our constant endeavour. Our School Leader, Ms. Panchami Manoo Ukil’s vision and experience has enabled the focus on a confluence of academic development together with personality enhancement that enriches every child’s cognitive growth. This is made possible only by exposing them to a wider world and broadening their horizons. We understand that the post-pandemic world will seek out resilient survivors who are the best balanced blend of wellness, IQ, and EQ. Therefore, our children have to be gently directed on this path through instilling of life skills, value systems and of course, a proactive engagement with the vast universe of knowledge that offers itself to them at every moment of life.

It is this vision that is the genesis of The Wisdom Finishing School Programme (WFSP), a one-of-a-kind finishing school module that comprises of familiarisation with knowledge domains and activities that enrich our children intrinsically, embedding skills, values and knowledge that polishes their personalities, enhances their intellect, and bring out the best of their innate gifts. Conceived by Ms. Panchami Manoo Ukil based on her academic experience at the Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls School, Jaipur, with content and resource development guided by her, The Wisdom Finishing School Programme has emerged as the only finishing school programme being undertaken by a mainstream school as a specialised module alongside the mandated curriculum, and is possibly the only such educational initiative in India, that starts early, from kindergarten to middle school.

Starting in 2018, we made conscious efforts to curate a model of learning that went beyond a defined curriculum. The idea was to broad base the learning system with seamless integration of a programme that inculcated skill sets, value systems, problem-solving and personality development by harmoniously blending traditional curriculum with the latest international trends.

Our finishing school programme is designed to inculcate a wholesome world view, enable global exposure, and encourage personality development by taking children through a gamut of presentations and activities on different subjects of interest. The topics are selected and customized after significant brainstorming and research by an able team of mentors, in making sure that there is great value-add to the wisdom of our children.

Covering eight broad areas of interest – Art and Craft, Literature and Communication, Etiquette, Eco – Consciousness and Green Citizenry, Music and Dance, Scientific Temper, Yoga and Martial Arts, Roots and Traditions, customised for pre-primary and primary grades, presentations and audio-visuals are created and compiled for specific sessions. While each presentation engages our young ones in person, parental information is factored into the module by sharing the beautifully prepared presentations with them, in order that they can refresh and enhance their own knowledge and support their wards towards continual learning. Our credo – let us take this forward, together.

Learning from the strengths and successes of the first module, Ms. Panchami Manoo Ukil, School Leader and Vice Chairperson, guided the devising of the curriculum for subsequent modules – WFSP 2, 3, and 4, strategizing separate training modules for mentors, and then incorporating the modules into the regular school schedule. Her guidance emphasized that while the curriculum would be curated by the team, it would also be transmitted to children by the same team instead of procuring standardised modules and professional trainers from outside. This has enabled inhouse resource and content development that continues to enrich the mentors as well as the students. The Wisdom Finishing School Programmes is purely homegrown and is passed on perfectly with the personal touch.

Today, only knowledge is not adequate for leadership; leadership positions demand a multi-skilled individual who is a listener, sets examples, solves problems with wisdom and resilience, and is the best version of his or her own self in order to be emulation and respect worthy. A perfectly “finished” individual, “finishing” being a continual process of adding value within and without, through life’s journey. When the watchword is “global”, education cannot be confined to traditional ideas of learning. The approach to education needs to be revolutionised through the amalgamation of a world view with the academic curriculum so that children are seamlessly ingrained with 21st century skill sets including critical thinking, and gain expansiveness of thought and expression.

Parents and guardians have reposed their trust in our undiluted efforts of making available a world class finishing school programme for their children right here in Bhubaneswar. Together, we move forward with the commitment of imparting holistic learning in the truest sense, giving our best, and keeping the faith that the unique approach to education at The DN Wisdom Tree Global School will facilitate the creation of many changemakers and leaders of the future.

The seed for TIPTOP, the unique finishing school programme curated by The DN Wisdom Tree Global School was sown more than thirty five years ago when an astute parent sent his child to a faraway residential school so that his child would receive an all-round education that would shape the child’s personality alongwith inculcating knowledge. That child was none other than our Vice-Chairperson Panchami Manoo Ukil who describes her personal journey of early education and how it impacted her deeply enough to inspire her to pass on that unique system of education to the next generation in her state of Odisha. Pleaseread on